Lawn-mower.



No. 672,36l. PatentBd Apr. l6, l90l.

W. L. HARDY. LAWN mowzn.

' (Application filed Dec. 1, 1892?.)

(No Model.)

15 I6 WITNESSES! 21M $."fifil'? a. & 9 3 I ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES WALLACE L. HARDY, OF J OLIET, ILLINOIS.

.LAWN MOWEl-I.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 672,361, dated April 16, 1901.

' Application filed December 1, 1899. serial No. 738,863. (No model.)

To atZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALLACE L. HARDY, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Joliet, county of Will, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lawn-Mowers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to lawn-mowers, and has for i ts object certainimprovements. which will be hereinafter set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan, partly broken away. Fig. 2 is a side elevation; and Figs. 3 and 4 are sections on lines 3 3 and 4 4, respectively, of Fig. 1.

In the said drawings and 11 are the side frames for the mower, the frame 11 being offset to permit the drive-wheel 12 to trail in the rear of the knives 21, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The frame 10 is a flat plate, and the other drive-wheel, 13, is located outside of it and somewhat in front of the drive-wheel 12. The side frames 10 and 11 are connected together by a sleeve 14, through which runs a shaft 15. On each end of the shaft 15 is a ratchet-pinion 16, each of which engages internal gear-teeth on the adjacent drive-wheel. The construction is such that driving force from the wheel 12 is communicated to wheel 13 by means of the pinions 16 and shaft 14;

but the wheel 12 may turn slower or run backward without afiecting wheel 13, while wheel 13 may turn faster without affecting wheel 12. This result may be accomplished by any form of ratchet mechanism; but I prefer to use that shown in Figs. 1 and 4, which consists of a loose pin 17, which engages internal lugs 18 in the interior of the pinion-casting. Located at the front between the frames 10 and 11 is the knife-shaft 19, one end of which is provided with another and similar ratchet-pinion, that also engages the internal teeth of the drive-wheel 13, but on the opposite side from the pinion previously described. The construction is such that a forward movement of the drive-wheel 13 acts to rotate the shaft 19 in the usual manner; but a backward movement of said wheel will not affect the shaft 19. It therefore follows that wheel 13 may alone drive the knife-shaft 19, leaving the wheel 12 idle, or the wheel 12 may drive alone, leaving the wheel 13 to act simply as an intermediate, or both wheels 12 and 13 may unite in driving, which will be the ordinary condition.

On the shaft 19 are secured the spiders 20, on the arms of which are carried the L-shaped knives 21. Knives of this form have greater strength than ordinary flat knives and have the advantage that they may be sharpened several times without materially affecting their adjustment.

Resting on flanges 22 on the frames 10 and 11 is a transverse bar 23, which is adjustable by means of the screws 24 and to which is secured the stationary knife 25 by means of the screws 26. The knife 25 is also arranged so that it may be sharpened without affecting the adjustment. This is accomplished by grinding the edge of knife 25 instead of the face, as by so doing the cutting edge or corner will not be materially displaced from the center of the shaft 19.

Supported by a pin 27 in the frame 10 is a trail-wheel 28, which is located in the rear of the wheel 13 for the purpose of steadying the machine. Near the front of the machine and in the frame 11 is a slot 29, which provides means for connecting another wheel 30, (shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1,) but which wheel is omitted when it is desired to cut the grass close to an obstruction, such as a tree. The studs or pins upon which wheels 12 and 28 turn are not secured at fixed places in the frames 11 and 10, but in curved slots 31 and 32, the object being to permit them to be adjusted so as to elevate or lower the knives 21 for cutting the grass longer or shorter, as may be desired. The axis about which this adjustment is made is that of the drive-wheel 13, which is located at a fixed point in the machine.

What I claim is 1. In a lawn mower provided with side frames and revolving knives supported between said frames, three wheels upon which said mower runs, each wheel being upon a different axis, means whereby either or both of two of said three wheels may serve to drive said knives, and means for adjusting one drive-wheel and the idle wheel with respect to the axis of the other drive-wheel, so as to vary the height of said knives from the ground.

2. In a lawn-mower, a series of knives carried upon a knife-shaft, a drive-wheel adjacent to one end of said knives and provided with connections for driving said shaft, a second drive-wheel located in the rear of the 5 Opposite ends of said knives, and an intermediate shaft provided with gears for conveying power-from one drive-wheel to the other.

3. vIn a lawn-mower; a pair of side frames,

ro drive-wheels on opposite sides of the machine and upon different aiz es, a shaft provided with gears for conveying power from one wheel to the other, and a sleeve surrounding said shaft and serving to unite said frames.

Signed by me at J oliet, Illinois, this 24th I 5 day of November, 1899;

WALLACE L. HARDY. Witnesses:

AXEL H. CHRISTENSEN, HARRY R. BROWN. 

